Great LAST MINUTE STOCKING STUFFER

Can't find that something special for everyone on your Christams shopping list? Here's a unique gift that they'll ACTUALLY USE and appreciate for months after the gift is given -- a Gift Membership to Netflix DVD rental service.

Netflix is now offering Gift Subscriptions from 1 - 12 months at a time. And it's affordable! You can get 1 month for a little as $5.99! That's for 2 DVD movies in a single month. With over 70,000 movie titles in stock, there really is something for everyone.

If they already have a NetFlix account, it will simply start their next billing cycle. If they are new to NetFlix, the gift will start the day they redeem the certificate on the site. And when the gift subscription ends, it will simply turn into an active subscription at that same rate you purchased for them, using their credit card put on file when they set-up and redeemed their gift certificate. Or they can simply cancel and return any DVD's they have out at that time.

And as if you wondered if there really is a santa, Blockbuster Video just announced that they will offer Netflix customers FREE rentals if they just bring in the Netflix rental envelopes (that you don't need for anything). So basically you can double the # of videos you get for free!

BACK-UP BUFFET $5 all you can eat

So Mozy, one of the attention-getting back-up services online has finally come out of beta this week. Most users will be able to get by with the totally free 2 Gig back-up account. The service is pretty slick and user-friendly. It basically does what is advertised.

If you have more than 2 Gigs worth of data that you want to archive online (like your iTunes library!), then just cough up $4.95/month or $54 for a year pre-paid (tiny discount for getting it over with and paying once during the year). And then relax...ahhhhh.

To celebrate coming out of beta mode, they are removing account size limitations for their paid service! What does that mean? It means you should back-up ALL your data immediately with Mozy. It's what I'm doing right after this blog post!



I like online back-up services a lot. And Mozy has gotten some stellar reviews against the competitors.

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Here is how simple it was to sign-up for the free account:

1. You register for a free account: You basically have to download Mozy software and backup your data. The download will take you less than 30 seconds, so it's worth going through registration to try out Mozy.

2. Download and install software.

Mozy downloads in just seconds, and the installation is simple and fast.

3. Select the folder & files that you want backed up.

Next, simply click on the types of data you want Mozy to archive, and it does the rest. You can also dig into the details of your hard drive and get specific about which files and directories you want Mozy to take care of.


Viola! You're done! Now you can sleep better at night knowing that you can always get your data back if something happens tonight, tomorrow, or any day!

Have you tried Mozy? Post a comment/constructive criticism to let us know what you think.

1/2 Gig for a 10 Spot

MP3 Player

Seems like everyone has an mp3 player except YOU. You gotta fit in! You can't be a laggard! But you can be cheap...the mp3 wars are officially on this holiday season and Creative is certainly tossing their hat into the ring. They're now discounting their Zen series mp3 player for only 10 buckaroos, and it ships for free, no taxes. So it's really ten bucks.

For $10, this 1/2 Gig mp3 player with FM tuner is a great deal. How many songs can it hold you ask? About 240 songs. And it can run about 18 hours on a single battery -- that's a lot of boogie woogie.

What a great stocking stuffer or extra player to take around and not worry if you drop it or loose it.

Also, a little known use for an mp3 player is a USB drive. You can store files to go with you as well making this a very practical thing to keep in your pocket!

This Google Checkout promo is awesome. You basically don't do anything different other than click and use the "google checkout" system to pay with your credit card -- and they reward you with $20 off. Maybe it is Christmas, huh?

Set-up your printer ANYWHERE with a wifi print server

So recently, I found the Samsung Color LASER Printer for $150. (No, that's not a mis-print). It auto-duplexes, does both color and b/w fast. The only drawback about that specific model was that is was not network ready -- only an optional upgrade.

The alternative is to simply get a print server -- a box that hooks up to the printer and then to your router so that anyone on your network can print to it directly. They usually go for about $50 retail, but go on sale sometimes.

Well, I went hunting for a print server and voila! I found one -- and BONUS! I found one that is wireless WiFi too! That means you can plug your printer in ANYWHERE -- not even near a computer or your router -- and still be on the network.

And it only gets better. It's only $20 bucks if you use Google Checkout at Buy.com right now (which just means you use any major credit card).

wifi print server

Alex, I'll take Color Printers for $200 please! (Samsung Color Laser Printer for only $200?!!?!?!)

Wow, the holiday pricing wars are not over yet!

Look what I found today - the Samsung Color Printer that DOES auto-duplexing (can print double sided color laser pages!) for only $219. It's the Office Depot store on Amazon - but you can't get this from OfficeDepot's own website!

I'd also go for the 2 or 3 year extended warranty. Usually I don't recommend it becuase they are rip offs, but at only $30, it looks like it's well worth it.

The only downside is that this printer is not networkable out of the box -- there's an upgrade kit or you can buy the 510N (N for networking). But I'd take a different route and pick up a USB print server that goes for $20-$30 usually. I actually just picked one up at CompUSA on sale for $15 the other week.

A Printer Server is a little box that connects your printer to your router -- this allows any computer on your entire network (including WiFi wireless laptops!) to print to that printer as if it was directly connected to the computer. VERY useful, epecially if you have multiple computers/people in your home or office. Basically it allows you to share the printer 24/7.

Crazy About Color

The world has gone mad. Mad about color I guess. A color laser printer for UNDER $300! What are they thinking? When I first got my current Xerox Tektronix color thermal printer (uses solid ink sticks) it went for $2,800, and that's just a couple of years ago.

And get this, if you order online, there's a promo on the front page of OfficeDepot.com that offers a free Color Inkjet printer for purchases over $250, which this qualifies for!





It's networkable and is pretty fast. The only downside is that it doesn't duplex (print doubled sided). I'd actually think about investing a little more to get a duplexing machine, but this price break is a sign of things to come I guess in this market. Bring on the color!

For example, here's a better color laser printer that does double-sided duplex printing from HP. It's only $100 more, so this is the one I'd probably go for. The same promos still apply -- free shipping, free color inkjet printer to go with your shiny new color laser:




Check them out!

More Free Rentals for NETFLIX customers!

FYI, local Blockbusters almost everywhere are now honoring the tear-off address flap from your NetFlix DVD rentals for a free in-store movie rental. So basically it's a 2-for-1 deal for NetFlix customers: You rent a DVD from NetFlix, then use that same envelope to get a free movie rental from the local Blockbuster...

Here's the press release from Blockbuster

And for those that want to jump on the bandwagon and truely get something for free, you can sign-up for a free trial from NetFlix immediately and get your 1st DVD in the mail within 24-48 hours (they are FAST). Their lowest plan is only $5.99/month too, which is really affordable and makes that service actually practical for most families.

What are you going to do with all those photos in your digital camera? (READ: Do you want a free color photo printer?)

FREE brand new Polariod photo printer with color ink cartridge included

This is a no-brainer -- even if you have a photo printer already! I'm sure Buy.com will sell out of this one within the day, so grab it while it lasts. Make sure you use Google Checkout as your payment option (you pay with any major credit card) to get the extra $20 off, making it TOTALLY FREE after rebates -- and get this, they thow in Free Shipping too right now!

Like I said, go get it now...it's the PICTURE PERFECT STOCKING STUFFER!